Ahhh, the art of the viral video. Being able to capture the attention of millions upon millions of online viewers through a simple video. It’s one thing when you’ve got someone like Will Ferrell behind a viral effort (don’t get me wrong, I love that video and Will Ferrell) but quite another when a classic moment just happens to be caught on tape and snowballs based on unplanned activity. A perfect example is Miss South Carolina’s response at the 2007 Miss Teen USA competition (now over 26 million views, holy smokes!).
It’s fascinating to think about how a site like YouTube has revolutionized the manner in which video content can be spread in a matter of minutes. Most recently, I’ve been tracking the recent Gatorade commercial Chicago ad firm Element 79 posted as well as the most recent post from Matt Harding (Dancin’ Matt).
Though I do appreciate the Gatorade commercial and creative nature of the ad, you can’t help but be impressed by the fact that Matt Harding posted the video above just over a week ago and has already tracked over 3.6 million views. Wow. What a prime example of pure content driving the storyline. Sure, on the surface it there seems to be no immediate call to action or driving point behind Matt’s dancing, but one quick glance over on his website comments or at the comments on his YouTube page will show you how this simplistic approach has touched millions around the world and served as a source of inspiration.
Just dance. It’s the one form of communication everyone can enjoy. Simple as that.
I’m sure there will be plenty more posts on this topic as we’re just touching the tip of the iceberg. I look forward to breaking it all down in future posts. For now, enjoy Matt.
I hadn’t seen the Matt Harding video before– what a great idea! You definitely have a point there about dance being the one form of communication that everyone can enjoy… when I think about it, a lot of my favorite viral videos just show people dancing. The Gatorade commercial, while impressive, loses some appeal because it was contrived. I’d spent some time earlier today looking at what people were saying about the Gatorade video (that’s how I found your blog post).
Thanks for dropping by Gloria. Most definitely, Matt’s videos always bring a smile to my face and if for no other reason, that’s motivation enough for me to tell others about his videos and so forth.
[…] most consider this dancer goofy? Sure (the same people that consider Matt Harding goofy). But what you have to respect is the dedication and overarching honesty that pulls others to […]
Digital Leap 
I hadn’t seen the Matt Harding video before– what a great idea! You definitely have a point there about dance being the one form of communication that everyone can enjoy… when I think about it, a lot of my favorite viral videos just show people dancing. The Gatorade commercial, while impressive, loses some appeal because it was contrived. I’d spent some time earlier today looking at what people were saying about the Gatorade video (that’s how I found your blog post).
Thanks for dropping by Gloria. Most definitely, Matt’s videos always bring a smile to my face and if for no other reason, that’s motivation enough for me to tell others about his videos and so forth.
[…] most consider this dancer goofy? Sure (the same people that consider Matt Harding goofy). But what you have to respect is the dedication and overarching honesty that pulls others to […]